See full version: 2019 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix
In qualifying, Lewis Hamilton took his eighty-eighth pole position, his first since the German Grand Prix earlier in the year. Valtteri Bottas qualified second, but with a number of grid penalties for engine changes, he was put to the back of the grid, promoting Max Verstappen and Charles Leclerc to second and third on the grid respectively. here
In the race, Hamilton kept the lead ahead of Verstappen and Leclerc, but Leclerc soon overtook Verstappen on the back straight. Lance Stroll made contact with Pierre Gasly at the first corner, spinning the latter into Sergio Pérez. While the three all continued racing, Gasly lost his front wing upon colliding with Pérez and had to pit for a new nose. Due to technical issues, DRS was not enabled until lap 18. Leclerc and Verstappen soon swapped positions after the former pitted earlier than the latter. Hamilton went on to take his eighty-fourth victory, also the first Grand Chelem since the 2017 British Grand Prix and since points were applied for ten-top runners setting the fastest lap. Verstappen and Leclerc finished second and third respectively, though Leclerc was immediately investigated by the stewards for an incorrect amount of fuel measured by the FIA before starting the race. He was allowed to keep his position, but the Ferrari team was fined €50,000 for breaching the regulations. [links]
The 2019 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix (officially the Formula 1 Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix 2019) [1] was the twenty-first and final race of the 2019 Formula One season, and the eleventh time the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix was held. It was held between 29 November and 1 December 2019. here
After failing to finish the Brazilian Grand Prix due to oil pressure, Bottas had a new engine fitted to his car. With excessive use of various power unit components, he was ordered by the stewards to start the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix from the back of the grid. [3] He later had another ICE, MGU-H, MGU-K and turbocharger fitted after a pneumatic leak was found on his car after FP2. [4] [links]
The Yas Marina Circuit brings a touch of Monaco glamour and Bahrain lights to the season finale. more
The Yas Marina Circuit requires the perfect setup to win. This balances pure speed with grip.
The Abu Dhabi Grand Prix joined the Formula One calendar in 2009 and has settled into the final slot of the season.
Overtaking is tricky around Abu Dhabi's tight final sector, but there are two superb spots to make passes after the DRS straights.
“Pretty much a good race having made a decent start. I struggled a bit and made a mistake at the end of my Soft stint, then had a big lock-up, so had to box earlier than we wanted to. But in general I felt like I did a good job with my tyre management. more
Hear from McLaren Formula 1 drivers Carlos Sainz, Lando Norris, and Team Principal Andreas Seidl after racing in Abu Dhabi.
“Very happy! The target this weekend was to finish P6 in the Drivers’ Championship and we made it happen! It wasn’t an easy race, with a lot of traffic in all the stints and having to start with the Soft [compound]. We went for the two stops knowing it was going to put me in a delicate position to make it to the top 10, but also knowing it was my only chance.
“It wasn’t an easy race for us today, since the start on Soft tyres compromised our race time compared to the guys that had free tyre choice at the start. Later in the race we decided to split our strategies and Carlos managed to put in an impressive extra stint with decisive overtakes on Medium tyres, which was then just enough to score the one point needed to secure P6 in the Drivers’ Championship. Lando did a great job managing his Hard tyres for a long, long stint, which was just not enough to keep Perez behind, but gave us another P8 in the last race of the season.
Hamilton’s win and pole meant Mercedes did the double in Abu Dhabi for the sixth year in a row. Ferrari remain yet to win or take pole position at this venue. Hamilton’s 88th career pole position ended his nine-race streak without a pole – his longest since 2013 – and means he now has 20 poles more than any other driver in the history of the sport. [links]
Max Verstappen ended the year third in the points standings, which is his highest ever finish. It’s also the best for a Honda-powered driver since Jenson Button’s third place for BAR-Honda 15 years ago. Fourth place for Charles Leclerc was his personal best, and the first time Sebastian Vettel’s finished behind by a team mate since Daniel Ricciardo beat him at Red Bull five years ago. [links]
Hamilton set a new record for leading the most races in a single season. This might have seemed unlikely after he failed to lead a lap of the season-opened in Melbourne. But he’s led at least one lap of every race since, except at Monza.
Schumacher is the only other driver to score points in every race This year drivers were also awarded a point for setting fastest lap. Hamilton took six of those bonuses, so without that he wouldn’t have set this new record. more
Lewis Hamilton couldn’t have asked for much more from the final F1 race of 2019.
Hamilton broke a third record by becoming the first F1 driver to score points in every race of a season twice. He did so this year and in 2017. more